Seven Days to Live

Tools

I promised my cat I wouldn't trash her dignity by dressing her in tiny clothes. Her part of the deal was refraining from launching slimy furballs where I might step on them. (Our uneasy truce still holds.) So you can imagine my surprise when I encountered Samantha Martin and her Amazing Acro-Cats — cats that do tricks for her using skateboards, balls, hoops and little musical instruments. I bet Martin steps on furballs a lot. Anyway, the show's at 7 tonight and tomorrow at Stargazers (10 S. Parkside Drive, stargazerstheatre.com); tickets are $18, $15 for kids; and part of the proceeds benefits Happy Cats Haven (happycatshaven.org). — Mary Jo Meade

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14 Thursday

music

"How Blue Can You Get" may be a relationship middle-finger for the ages, but it's no longer the same king of Beale Street blues who's pumping it out. B.B. King turns 89 years old in September and as you might imagine, his live shows, of which he plays hundreds a year, have taken a hit. Concert-goers say he spends more time chatting with the front row than he does playing, while his band carries most of the weight. Of course, when he does pick up Lucille it's lights out, so go pay proper tribute to the demi-god at 8 tonight at the Pikes Peak Center (109 S. Cascade Ave., pikespeakcenter.com). Tickets start at $58. — Bryce Crawford

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15 Friday

film

To discuss music's true power over us often smacks of the sentimental and clichéd, but nobody really needs to be told how a song at the right moment can make a person feel. Witness even more profound impacts with the Sundance Audience Award-winning documentary Alive Inside at 7 tonight in Colorado College's Armstrong Hall (14 E. Cache La Poudre St., windridercolorado.org). It tracks a nonprofit's work inside the health-care system, using music to battle memory loss and stimulate brains and spirits. Filmmaker Michael Rossato-Bennett will host a Q&A afterward; seats are $10 ($6.50 students; $25 VIP includes apps and meet-and-greet). — Matthew Schniper

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16 Saturday

vets

Did you know there are multiple versions of the traveling Vietnam Memorial? According to Jim Wear, president of Pro-Promotions, the largest one — 80 percent of the scale of the Wall in Washington, D.C. — is managed by American Veterans Traveling Tribute. And that's the Wall that'll be part of the 22nd annual Salute to American Veterans Rally, organized by Wear's company, running through the weekend. The wall goes up Thursday at Cripple Creek High School; the rally itself begins in earnest Friday; and this morning brings the POW/MIA Recognition Ride (from Woodland Park High School to Cripple Creek), followed by a noontime remembrance ceremony, complete with fly-overs, in (and above) City Park. It's free; check theveteransrally.org for more. — Kirk Woundy

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17 Sunday

cars

Car shows have long held a special place in my heart. Living in L.A., you could always find lovingly restored classics at the Bob's Big Boy in Burbank on Friday nights, then head out on weekends to drool over tricked-out custom cars and metal-flaked rat rods. While car shows in Colorado are less frequent, their participants are no less enthusiastic. Kathy Quatkemeyer, better known as Kathy K to her Colorado Cruizers cohorts, promises that this year's Good Times Car Show entries will cut cross all boundaries, limited only by their owner's "imagination and money." Now in its 23rd year, the shows started out at a Platte Avenue drive-in movie theater, which is now a Walmart, and have since moved to Old Colorado City's Bancroft Park. This year's event, which runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with awards at 2, will once again benefit Canine Companions for Independence. Find more info at goodtimescarshow.com. — Bill Forman

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18 Monday

art

A few years ago, local artist Barbara von Hoffmann headed to the Smithsonian Institution to accept an award at the prestigious Nature's Best Photography Windland Smith Rice International Awards Competition and Exhibition; her image of a giraffe mother cuddling its baby was one of 16 winners. Today, you can see more of von Hoffmann's work, along with that of Ron Koehn and Madalyn Kae. All three have traveled to Africa for the wildlife and culture, and returned inspired, and are thus the creatives of Wanyama Africa now on display at Commonwheel Artists Co-op (102 Cañon Ave., Manitou Springs, commonwheel.com). The show opened Friday with a 5 p.m. reception, and is up daily through Sept. 15. — Edie Adelstein

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19 Tuesday

music

Pat Benatar rocks. Pat Benatar rocks so hard that simply hearing her name gets the chorus from her 1980 hit "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" stuck in my head. Thirty-five years into her career, Benatar is still touring with guitarist and husband Neil Giraldo, and they're playing the Pikes Peak Center (109 S. Cascade Ave.) at 8 tonight. Tickets range $43 to $53. And now "Heartbreaker" is stuck in my head. For more information and earworms, go to pikespeakcenter.com. — Griffin Swartzell